iWant My Dad
by ILYinklingILY
Summary: When Carly realizes her dad's been in a tragic accident, her world is turned upside down. Can she get through this horrible experience? second attempt at a fanfic
1. The News

**iWant My Dad**

**_Chapter 1: The News_**

It was a sunny, cheery day in Seattle. The sky was blue, the laughter of children filled the air, and the sweet smell of nature engulfed the atmosphere in a hazy mist of peace. In other words, it was a beautiful day, but... -

"I'm bored," Sam moaned, as she and her two best friends walked through the park across the street from Carly and Freddie's apartment complex, Bushwell Plaza.

"Come on, Sam, we've only been walking for ten minutes," Carly replied. "It's a beautiful day, why waste it indoors?"

"And why waste it out here when the Groovy Smoothie is less than ten minutes away?" Sam responded, irritated by the nature surrounding her from all sides. It made her feel like a prissy nature-loving freak. She didn't like it - it made her skin itch. She was relieved when she saw a beehive in the distance, and picked up a rock instinctively.

"Sam!" Carly said, warningly, but Sam had already chucked the stone as hard as she could toward the hive. It hit its mark dead-on. In a matter of seconds, an angry buzzing resounded through the air. A swarm of bees rose from the hive's entrance and immediately went after the threesome as fast as their wings could carry them.

"Run!" Freddie shouted, his two friends way ahead of him. They ran and ran, farther and farther away from the park, through roads and through bushes, not noticing people's curious glances cast after them. The bees seemed to like the chase and speeded toward them, like hundreds of tiny darts hurtling toward a dartboard. Finally, at last, the three almost out of energy, the bees stopped mid air. They had reached their limit. They turned back, and Carly could swear she could hear them cursing underneath their breath.

"Phew, now that's what I call a good exercise, baby!" Sam said, punching the air, the adrenaline still coursing through her veins. Carly gave her a dirty look, heaving, trying to get precious oxygen back into her lungs. Freddie looked like he'd died, collapsed on the pavement, gasping for breath.

"That was really dangerous, Sam!" Carly scolded, after catching her breath, scowling at her careless best friend who looked like she always did after doing something completely reckless and stupid - like someone who'd just won a million dollars from the lottery.

"Relax, Shay, live a little!" Sam said, grinning. "You can't tell me you didn't find that even a little fun!"

Carly sighed and rolled her eyes. Sam would never learn.

"Where are we, anyway?" she asked, grumpy that her attempt to bring the gang outside for a change ended up in disaster. She helped Freddie back onto his feet and looked around. She'd never been in this part of town before. They were on a bridge high above a glistening river. Few shops were scattered around the area, and lamp posts and benches were dotted around the sidewalks. It looked old and rustic and pretty, but Carly was in too much of a huff to notice. Freddie took his Pear phone out of his pocket and checked his GPS.

"We're in Old-town Seattle," he informed the two girls. He looked around for a moment. "It's nice here," he acknowledged. "I've never been here before."

"Me neither," Carly told him.

"Well, while we're here, let's check around for a place to eat!" Sam commented. "I'm _starving_."

"Surprise, surprise," Freddie said, putting his phone back into his pocket. Sam punched him in his arm, not appreciating his humor, which prompted an, "Ow!" from the brown haired teen.

"Guys, don't fight here!" Carly put herself between her feuding friends. "We'll find a place to eat, okay, Sam? Let's just go." She seemed down.

"Hey, I know you wanted a nice afternoon with us in the park, but did you really expect it to turn out normal?" Freddie asked, his eyes soft and caring. Carly couldn't help but smile. "Now, let's get Princess Puckett something in her stomach. God only knows what happens when she's lost and hungry at the same time."

"If you don't want to find out, let's go now!" Sam said, almost whining, anxious to find a new place that sold ham. She really was hungry, and she always got grumpy when she was hungry. The thrill of the beehive was over, and she now seemed bored and restless.

"Okay, okay," a respirited Carly said, laughing. "Don't get your panties in a knot."

"Agh! You know I hate that word!" Sam screeched, covering her ears with her hands, walking toward the shops down the street.

Carly and Freddie laughed. Sam stopped in her tracks.

"What's wrong?" Carly asked. Sam's face broke into a grin.

"Mama smells me some ham!" she exclaimed, rubbing her empty stomach happily. "By the way, you two are paying," she added.

"What else would we expect?" Freddie said, him and Carly rushing after their curly haired friend who was running toward the shop that sold the delicious ham she was smelling.

**~R~R~R~R~R~**

After filling up on fried ham and pink lemonade at a lonely cafe a block from the bridge, the three decided to return to it so they could retrace their steps back home. Carly and Freddie had already called their legal guardians, and after a ten minute long phone conversation with his mother that consisted of his mother frantically asking if she should get off work to come and pick them up and Freddie firmly refusing, telling her to keep working, they were ready to find their way back to Bushwell Plaza. Spencer had sounded distracted on the phone since he was working on his newest sculpture (it was a surprise) so he couldn't come pick them up either. Sam's mom was out of the question, so the three were on their own.

"Look at this bridge," Freddie told Carly and Sam, awestruck, after examining it closely for the first time. "Why'd they build it so high up?"

"Yeah, if someone jumped from this big baby they definitely would not live to tell the tale," Sam added.

"Always the positive one," Carly joked. Sam shrugged.

"Mama tells the facts," she said.

"Okay, let's see," Freddie murmured, his phone out, checking his GPS again. "I'll tell us when to turn when we need to, okay?"

Carly and Sam agreed, but just then Carly's cell phone rang.

"It's Spencer," she told her friends. "Probably wanting to give us a ride now. One sec," she added, holding up a finger and answering the call.

"Yeah, Spence?" she said into the receiver.

"Carls..." His voice was heavy and strained. "I...I'm..."

"What's wrong, Spencer? Did something happen?" Carly was worried now. Freddie and Sam stared at her curiously.

There was a moment's silence on the other end. Finally he answered, and it was reluctant, like he was trying to protect her from something.

"It's dad," he said, and the tone of his voice made her blood run cold.

Carly didn't know what to say. She eventually found her voice, and even then it was strangled. "What about dad?" Carly whispered, afraid to speak any louder. She was scared if she did the world around her would break like a glass screen. Blood was pounding in her ears. This was it, her dad was dead. He was dead. Something had happened in his sub, maybe a gas explosion or maybe he'd been captured by the enemy and was being tortured for answers this very second. Her heart was beating fast, so fast, and she felt like vomiting up the ham she'd eaten only thirty minutes back, when life seemed so much more peaceful than the present.

This time the silence on the other end was excruciating. She hadn't realized that Freddie and Sam had their arms wrapped around her and that tears were spilling from her eyes.

Spencer finally uttered the words Carly was dreading: "His...his sub's been bombed, Carls."


	2. A Shock

**iWant My Dad**

_**Chapter 2: A Shock**_

Carly dropped her phone after she heard the news. She didn't hear it crack on the ground or see the case and battery skid across the pavement. All she felt was numbness. All those little prayers to God, all those wishes to those stupid first stars of the night, just for her dad to be okay...they proved to be worthless, nothing but temporary solace from the nightmarish experiences people were forced to deal with.

"Carls," Sam said, (she seemed so far away even though she was only inches away from her) forcing her hand into Carly's tightly clenched fist. "It's going to be okay, Carls, we'll get you through this."

Freddie hugged both of them from behind. "I'm so sorry, Carly," he whispered into her ear. Just those four, soft words prompted a sob to come from Carly's chest. It was a heartbreaking sound, the sound of despair, of complete and total anguish. From the many years Freddie and Sam had known this usually bubbly and cheerful girl they had never heard this strangled sound come from her, and they hugged her closer, shielding her from even more of the heartbreaks of the cold, cruel world.

A whole lifetime seemed to have passed on this lonely bridge when Freddie's cell rang. He went to silence it but Carly smiled a watery smile and broke apart from the tight embrace.

"It's okay," she said, suddenly exhausted. "It might be your mom freaking out, you should answer it."

Freddie stared into her red puffy eyes meaningfully for a moment before fishing the Pear phone out of his pocket and flipping it open.

"Hello?" he answered, his voice oddly hoarse. Carly sighed when she heard it, knowing this tragedy would only affect her two best friends the same way it would affect her. It was like they were the same entity, and they shared their pain with the other two when they felt it.

Sam was silent. Carly glanced at her best friend and was surprised to see tears in her eyes.

"Sam, you're crying!" Carly said, shocked.

"No, I just have something in my eye," she growled, huffing. She looked away. Carly was amazed. There were few times she had seen the blonde headed teen cry, and often time it was for or because of Carly. Carly rubbed her friend's arm in a comforting way, even though she was the one who needed comforting right now. But at that moment Carly had felt a rush of gratitude so great toward her friends that it made her heart hurt. She didn't deserve these amazing friends, but she was glad to have them in times like these.

"Spencer, Spencer, calm down," Freddie was saying, and Carly was snapped from her thoughts. "Carly, okay, she's right here, she's...she's upset, but she's fine. Say it slower this time." He stopped talking, and Carly could hear Spencer on the other line. Then Freddie was talking, and Carly lost interest. She couldn't believe her dad...was dead. She'd always imagined him coming back from his post one day, walking through the door of their apartment and staying for good. It wasn't that Spencer wasn't a good parental figure, she just missed her dad so much sometimes it made her head spin. The way he used to pick her up, twirl her around, and kiss her forehead and call her, "his little princess," or when he'd wake up extra early some mornings to make her and Spencer and her mom the breakfast of champions (eggs, muffins, toast, bacon, sausage, and freshly squeezed orange juice) but then mom had left and he'd buried himself in his work and eventually left for a post in Alaska, and he'd been there for the past several years. Sometimes Carly would have to look at pictures of him to remind herself what he looked like. And now he had been snatched from her, and the small flame hope of him returning was snuffed, and she felt lost, so lost. No more letters, packages, gifts, phone calls. She crumpled onto the ground.

"Carly!" Freddie and Sam said at the same time. They helped her back up and Freddie let her lean on him so she wouldn't collapse again.

"You okay, kid?" Sam asked, softly, stroking her straight brown hair gently.

"I will be," Carly whispered. Her heart had never felt so broken before. Her mascara was running down her face and onto Freddie's blue plaid shirt, but she didn't care right now. She stared at the lake instead. The endless amount of blue made her feel better somehow. Maybe if she dove into the water, felt her body break along with her heart, it wouldn't hurt this much. But Freddie was forcing her to stand straight up again, and she didn't want to. He had felt so warm, and the sound of his heart beating had been so comforting she didn't want to let go, but he was pushing her to the road, to a blue Chrysler whose doors were open.

"Spencer drives a blue Chrysler," she said stupidly. Freddie chuckled.

"I know," he told her. He ushered her into the vehicle. She was still incoherent and the seats felt so soft that she fell unconscious almost immediately. Sam and Freddie sidled in beside her. Spencer looked at his baby sister, pain in his eyes. He hated seeing her so broken.

"I'm sorry for putting you guys through this," Spencer apologized. "I didn't get to tell Carly the whole story."

Sam and Freddie waved it off. "She'll be okay now," Freddie said firmly, staring at the sleeping angel laying beside him. Spencer smiled sadly and began to drive in response.

"Carly! Carly, wake up, come on!"

**~R~R~R~R~**

Carly stirred a little. She had had an awful dream. Her mouth felt dry and tasted weird and her eyes seemed to be glued shut by her hardened mascara. At last she snapped open her eyes. Sam was sitting over her, slapping her face gently with the back of her hand.

"Leave me alone, Sam," Carly groaned, suddenly realizing she felt like she'd just recently been hit by a truck. "I feel like crap."

Sam chuckled at that one. "Come on, kid, we're here, get up."

Carly made a grunting sound, closing her eyes again. "No, Sam, just leave me be. Let me sleep here for the night."

"Sorry, cupcake, but it's only 2:30 right now." Carly felt her tugging at her arm and knew she was going to lose this battle, so she just sighed and relented.

"Where are we?" she murmured, sleep still making her mind foggy. Then she remembered that her dad was dead, and she doubled over in pain.

"Carly?" Sam said, panicking. "Are you okay? Carly?"

"Stop panicking, Sam," Carly moaned. "Just...period cramps, okay?"

"...Okay," Sam said, but it was obvious she didn't believe her friend. She helped Carly out of the car. Spencer and Freddie were waiting for her.

"Carry me," she told Spencer groggily, holding her arms out. Spencer smiled and accepted the package cheerfully. Carly couldn't believe he could be so happy right now - her dad had just been killed in the line of duty, and he was acting like his normal self. She was in no mood to argue with him right now though so she just settled herself in his arms and closed her eyes. She didn't care where they were, she just wanted this day to end.

They walked inside the building they had arrived at. It was cold and smelled faintly like bleach and she buried her face in Spencer's chest. She must've fallen asleep again, because when she stirred back to life again they were in a room with white and black tiled floors that smelled strongly of medicine. She wrinkled her nose and looked around the room the four were in.

It took her another second to realize they were in a hospital, and another that in the bed straight ahead there was someone laying inside it that she knew all too well.

"Dad?" she whispered, and felt her legs give in to her weight.

**~R~R~R~R~**

Gosh, I might not continue this one either cuz frankly I suck at writing. Sorry, guys who actually happen to want to read this story! Oh, and I still don't really know how to work this site so sorry if the format is all weird sometimes and whatnot!


	3. Welcome Back

**iWant My Dad**

_**Chapter 3: Welcome Back**_

Carly's heart was beating fast. What was happening? Her head was swimming with questions and confusion. The ground was cold, and she felt the warm hands of people attempting to pick her up from the ground, but she ignored them. The ground felt so much safer right now.

"Carly," she heard voices call out to her, reach out to her, trying to snap her back to the distorted reality, but she didn't want to go back, not yet. The lights were too bright, way too bright, and she closed her eyes tightly. She wanted her dad, the desire inside her chest was burning her, she couldn't take the reality in front of her anymore. She blacked out.

When she woke up, six eyes were peering at her worriedly. Their faces showed obvious relief when her eyes flitted back open. She was propped up in a hospital bed, with a pillow cushioning her head. She was in the same room, but in a different part of it. A curtain was shielding her from the outside, and she was wondering how she got here, when a voice pierced through the peace and quiet of the hospital room.

"Carly, you're awake!" Spencer cried. He hugged her so tightly she was left gasping for air. "Don't worry me like that again, Carls," he whispered into her ear before he let her go.

She murmured a groggy agreement. She had a pounding headache, and it felt like someone had just kicked her stomach in over and over again. She ignored the pain and focused on her two best friends instead. Their faces were pale and tired, but happy that she was awake.

"Hey, kid," Sam said, patting her best friend's clammy hand gently. "Don't you ever do that to mama again." Carly smiled at that.

"The nurses said you'd be fine and that it was just a shock," Freddie told her. "And don't worry, you've only been out for half an hour." She turned to face him. "I mean, you thought your dad was dead and when you saw him -"

"My dad," Carly interrupted, whispering. "I don't understand, Spencer said he was dead."

"I didn't say that, Carly," Spencer insisted. "I just said his sub was bombed."

"Which means he was as good as dead," Carly argued back. Her headache was killing her. She would do anything for a couple aspirin and some bottled water, but she was hungry for answers so she didn't ask for anything.

"He was the only survivor," Spencer replied, and Carly's heart soared. "He was out of the sub when it exploded, so he was close enough to get the impact of the explosion but not enough to kill him." And just like that, Carly's spirits lifted and the hope was back in her chest, as strong as ever.

"So...he's alive? Is he okay?" Her voice sounded far away. She was imagining her dad twirling her in the air once more, calling her his little princess over and over again, and the memory made her smile. Her headache was suddenly gone and it felt like a thousand pound weight was lifted from her shoulders.

"He's pretty beat up, and he hasn't woken up yet, but the doctors say he's going to be okay," Spencer assured her. Carly was grinning so widely it felt like her face was going to split in two. He was okay! Life would go on, and this time her dad would be in it. For once everything seemed fine. She said a silent thanks to God and the stars she had wished on so hard for these past several years and apologized for thinking that they had forsaken her earlier that day.

"When can I see him?" Carly suddenly demanded. She wanted to see him so badly. They were in the same room this very second. She was so close to him. How could she have wasted time not seeing him by passing out? She cursed herself quietly.

"Right now if you want to, kiddo," Spencer smiled. He gripped the side of her curtain and swung it open. On the other side was her dad.

Carly felt like crying. There was her dad. His face was scratched up and gauze covered most of his body, and his head had been shaved because of a huge, deep gash that was most likely the effect of the explosion, but he was there in one piece. It wasn't the picture she kept on having to check so she wouldn't forget him, it was him, in the flesh. His handsome, rugged features betrayed his real age, and a five o' clock shadow overwhelmed his face.

"Welcome back to Seattle, Colonel Shay," she whispered, smiling, tears streaming down her face. Freddie and Sam and Spencer stood back, smart enough to decide that this was her moment, and that they shouldn't disturb it.

"When will he wake up?" Carly asked, holding her dad's bandaged hand tightly. She never wanted to let go.

"He's in a coma, Carls, it could be days, weeks, months," Spencer replied softly and carefully. She nodded, accepting the fact. The only thing she knew was that she wanted to be there when he opened his chocolate brown eyes to the world again.

"Can we stay here for the night?" Carly requested. Spencer hesitated but then nodded.

"You don't have to go to school tomorrow, either," he decided, knowing it was the right thing to do. Carly nodded like she already knew that that would be his answer and turned to face her dad again. Ten minutes must've passed. Sam had gone down to the cafeteria, and Spencer had followed, promising to bring back ginger ale and lime flavored jell-O cubes for Carly and Freddie.

She was so absorbed in trying to remember every line, every feature, of her dad's face that she almost didn't realize that Freddie had placed his hand on her shoulder.

"So that's your dad, huh?" he asked, and she almost jumped. She almost had forgotten that he was there.

Carly smiled at him. "Yeah," she said, almost proudly. She stroked the side of his face with the back of her hand. She wanted him to wake up, but decided not to push God any further with anymore of her prayers.

"Well, we now know where you Shays got their good looks from," he went on casually. Carly always liked how Freddie could compliment her in such an off-hand way that it sounded like he was commenting on weather, and yet meant it all the same. She made a mental note to thank him properly later on for being such a good friend.

"This must be pretty straining for you," he went on. "I just want you to know that Sam and Spencer and I are always here for you, Carls. Always." His statement was so heartfelt and genuine that Carly took the moment to hug him tightly around his neck.

'Thank you, Freddie," she whispered, her breath tickling his neck. He hugged her tightly back. She didn't mind that he was probably praying that the embrace was more than just being friendly, she just wanted to hang on to him and smell his husky scent that always calmed her down in the craziest moments of her life.

Freddie chuckled and held her before stiffening quickly.

"Freddie?" Carly questioned, breaking apart from him and staring deep in his soothing brown eyes. "What's wrong?"

He just gaped from over her shoulder. She turned to see what he was looking at and gasped. Her dad's eyes were open. They were glazed over, foggy, and had a lost look in them, but they were open.

"Should I call the nurse...?" Freddie asked.

"Not yet," Carly said breathily. Her dad was awake.

_Thank you, God, again, _she said to him silently. Then she took her dad's hand in hers again and squeezed tightly. His head snapped toward hers and their eyes met.

"Dad," she whispered, and the thousandth tear of the day escaped her right eye.

He stared right through her though, and it took him a moment to find his voice. He finally found it and he made a low moaning sound. Then he looked at Carly again. Something about his actions was making her blood run cold, and then he asked the question that changed everything:

"Do I...know you?"

* * *

**A/N: Well, I'm just popping these things out now. I have way too much time on my hands :) Well, I don't know, I don't really mind people not reading this, but I probably won't continue if I don't feel motivation, so sorry people who might be enjoying this story!**

**P.S. Sorry if some of this information might be weird/incorrect. I'm not good with research.**

**And thanks to the like two readers who are reading this :P**

**~Inkling**


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